26 members recommend for October...

26 is now an official Amazon affiliate. That means if you order a recommended book or CD by following the links to Amazon, 10% of what you pay will end up in 26’s coffers, helping us to put on more events and recommend more books. A virtuous circle, if you like.

......................................

‘Death Sentences’ by Don Watson (Gotham Books, £10.05 on Amazon)
Australian broadcaster and former political speech writer Don Watson has the style, wit and intellectual muscle of a latter-day Sir Ernest Gowers (‘The Complete Plain Words’ and ‘Fowler’s Modern English Usage’). The sub-title ‘How Clichés, Weasel Words and Management-Speak Are Strangling Public Language’, tells you all you need to know about the book. His passage on the Prime Minister RJ Hawke (an Australian John Prescott by all accounts) made me cry with laughter. A very funny, very serious book. JJ





......................................

http://www.lookatbook.com
For 36 weeks, a sketchbook was sent randomly between four artists – Mac Premo and Duke Riley of Brooklyn, New York, and Oliver Jeffers and Rory Jeffers of Belfast, Northern Ireland. The result, ‘book’, is crammed full of 60,000 miles-worth of imaginings, interpretations and unexpected connections. TR

......................................

‘The Book Of Lost Books – An Incomplete History Of All The Great Books You Will Never Read’ by Stuart Kelly (Viking, £15.99 list, £11.19 on Amazon)
Masterpiece or codpiece? Thing is, we’ll probably never know. Kelly provides an erudite, witty romp through literature, from the ancient Greek and Arabic masters through Shakespeare, Milton and Plath, right up to the present day. He speculates on unwritten and abandoned gems as well as potential A-level texts that have curiously gone missing. JD



......................................

‘The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou’ on DVD (directed by Wes Anderson, £10.99 on Amazon)
This impossibly quirky film is ostensibly the tale of a latter-day Jacques Cousteau (wonderfully played by Bill Murray) on one last expedition. Its narrative is sprawling and often ridiculous, but riveting nonetheless. Director Wes Anderson manages to capture a skewed yet wistful atmosphere, perfectly soundtracked by Seu Jorge’s deckside acoustic renditions of Bowie songs in Portuguese. JD



......................................

‘Helmut Krone, The Book: Graphic Design And Art Direction; Concept, Form And Meaning After Advertising’s Creative Revolution’ by Clive Challis (The Cambridge Enchorial Press, £44.99 on Amazon)
Don’t let this gobstopper of a title put you off, there’s more great advertising here than you can shake a stick at. It’s big, it’s detailed and it’s rather expensive, but for anyone interested in advertising's creative revolution it’s a must. The copy for the Avis campaign is particularly impressive, even 35 years later. RH


......................................

Howies Autumn 2005 catalogue
The latest offering from Cardigan Bay’s third-largest clothing company brings you the usual heady blend of hard-hitting Ts, open-air photography, and right-on writing. And this one also has a great piece on baking your own bread by 26 stalwart Dan Germain. Tasty. JD

......................................

http://www.yaelf.com/slang
From the recibiendos, tumbos and zapatillas of bull-fighting enthusiasts to the twists, slugs and roscoes of noir thriller writers; this is a great doorway into a lively party of language-loving web sites. Here you'll find the linguistic peccadilloes of spooks, rappers, college girls, Antarcticans and many others hubbubbing along together. TR

......................................

‘The People’s Act Of Love’ by James Meek (Canongate Books, £12.99 list, £9.09 on Amazon)
Published earlier this year, but as if Dostoevsky were writing today about revolutionary Russia. A compelling novel about obsession, moral turbulence, love, hatred and survival (yes, it’s all there). Big themes but brilliant storytelling. JS




......................................

This month’s plugs by Jim Davies, Jamie Jauncey, Roger Horberry, John Simmons and Tim Rich. These are not necessarily the views of 26, but we hope they’re not far off the mark. Any contributions gratefully received.

posted by jim @ 10:38 AM